Emma Pooley has decided to retire from cycling. She will do two more races: the time trial (31st of July) and road race (3rd of August) at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Recently she won three stages at the Giro Rosa and could go home with the green jersey as winner of the mountain classification.

She can look back on a successful cycling career. In 2010 she won the world time trial title and FlècheWallonne. At the Olympic Games in Beijing Emma gained the silver medal in the time trial. Over the years she collected three national time trial titles, the last one this season, and in 2010 she won the British road race title. She has won 6 UCI World Cup races in her career. Emma Pooley has had great results in stage races as well. In 2009 she won La Grande Boucle Féminine, in 2010 she won the Tour de l’Aude, and in the Giro she finished second on GC in 2011 and 2012. Now she wants to focus on triathlon. Emma talks about her decision, her plans for the future and looks back on her cycling career.

Retire at the right moment
Emma Pooley: “I’ve decided to retire from cycling after the Commonwealth Games. That’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while. I want to stop at a time that’s right for me. Now I have the time and opportunity to do triathlon in the second part of this year, in 2015 and maybe the two years after that as well. I want to stop at the right moment. Even if I hadn’t won three stages at the Giro Rosa I would have stopped and have been satisfied with the season, because I did my best and I’ve been very happy in the Lotto Belisol Ladies team. I’m very lucky to be able to choose when to stop and not to be forced because of an injury for example. And I’m grateful to have the backing 100% of the Lotto Belisol team in my decision.”

A new challenge: triathlon
“I’m leaving professional cycling partly because I want to do more triathlons. I need a different challenge. It’s also difficult to combine both sports. I want to focus 100% and if I continue cycling and do triathlon as well that wouldn’t be fair to the sport. I’ve loved cycling and I’m really lucky with the opportunities I had. I think I have potential in triathlon and want to see how far I can come. When I started competing in cycling races nine years ago I never expected to be professional or go to the Olympics. I’ve been really lucky to have that opportunity, and especially to have had the support and encouragement of some wonderful people throughout my career – especially at the start. I think I can look back and be proud of my performances in cycling.”

“In September I’ll take part in the World Championship long distance duathlon in Zofingen, Switzerland. Then I’ll take a break. In November and December I’ll do some Iron Man and longer triathlons in Asia, for example Thailand and Taiwan. And then in Australia. The second half of this year I mainly want to do races for fun. Next year I’ll do more Iron Man races. Now I can focus my training completely on triathlon. I want to see how far I can come. Just like was the case when I started cycling.”

The highlights
“The first UCI race I won, a stage in Thüringen-Rundfahrt in 2007, was definitely one of the highlights in my career. Obviously the World Championships were that as well just as the silver medal in the 2008 Olympics. The sixth stage at the Giro this year was the most emotional win I’ve ever had. Partly because I didn’t believe I could do it and partly because it was so hard to win. It had been a long time since I had won a race on that level. I knew that it’s so nice to finish on a high and it was one of the last chances to win a stage there. What I will miss most when I’ll have quit cycling are the people. Certainly my teammates, but also the people from other teams. I’m privileged to know so many amazing people, who I’ve met over the years in the sport. The Commonwealth Games are still a big personal target. I’m focusing on the time trial. After the Giro Rosa I did many trainings on my time trial bike. I’m really looking forward to the race. All my family is coming to watch. That will be really special.”

Data:
Name: Emma Pooley
Date of birth: 03/10/1982
Place of birth: London